1. Technical Field
This invention relates to a component removal tool and, more particularly, to a tool for removing valve springs and valve guide seals from an engine.
2. Prior Art
An automotive engine “valve job” involves removal of the valve cover and cylinder head, followed by disassembly and removal of each valve from the cylinder head for replacement or repair.
The valves are held in place in the cylinder head, each by a compression spring acting on the valve stem to keep it tightly closed. A dish-shaped retainer centered on top of the valve spring has a frusto-conical inner ramp surface which engages a pair of frusto-conical “keepers”, forcing them into positive locking engagement with the valve stem. The two keepers are halves of a split ring, together forming a frusto-conical ring to surround and engage the inner ramp of the retainer. The inner surfaces of the keepers together form one or more circumferential keys to engage corresponding circumferential keyways near the top of the valve stem. The conical inner surface of the retainer engages the conical outer surface of the keepers to force them into locking engagement with the valve stem.
To disassemble and remove a valve, it is first necessary to further compress the valve spring, move the retainer out of engagement with the keepers, remove the keepers which are now loose, remove the retainer and spring (which are now free), then slide the valve stem (which is now free) out through the underside of the cylinder head.
The procedure described above is usually performed by using a C-clamp or the like to compress the valve spring, then using one's fingers or needle nose pliers to remove the keepers. Another expedient is the use of a lever having a notch at its end to straddle the valve stem, the fulcrum of the lever being anchored to a rocker arm stud. The lever is pivoted about the rocker arm stud to thereby compress the valve spring and permit manual removal of the keepers. All of these methods, though, still require the complete removal of the engine block from the automobile and then the cylinder head from the engine block, and other time consuming preparatory procedures.
Accordingly, a need remains for a tool for removing valve springs and valve guide seals from an engine to overcome the above noted shortcomings. The present invention satisfies such a need by providing a convenient, easy to use, effective and time saving tool for valve spring removal. Such a tool takes advantage of existing bolt holes in the engine block and thus requires no removal or modification of an engine block in order to use.